Walker and Giddens, Again.

[billysan]

I agree with Nick about Danny's culpability here. I also agree with Winsomme regarding Doc Rivers having to use the pieces he has as best he can.

The thing is this, I refuse to believe that Bill Walker cant be 'coached' or taught into at least staying in front of a guy like Lebron James for 10 minutes a night. Sure there will be fouls, I can live with that. At least he will be wearing Lebron down. I think Scalabrine will give a tremendous effort and do it in an intelligent manner, but he will pick up some quick fouls against Lebron basically the same way. 

We have the perfect guy for Walker to practice against in Pierce. If he cannot come close to covering Paul in practice (I dont believe that he cant at least bother Pierce) then he is as bad as Tony Allen because that makes it mental more than physical. The same theory applies to Ray Allen with JR Giddens against the better SG around the league.

The final part of my theory here is this: We could do worse than trading baskets with a Lebron or Kobe team while Paul or Ray gets a few minutes rest around a quarter break. There are going to other Celtic weapons out there that Lebron cannot deal with like KG, Rondo and even Eddie House. Let the Lebrons play 42-44 minutes, he will be more worn down in the 4th quarter in the close games while our guys have a little more energy. Then we will see the 'Truth'.

[KungPoweChicken]

I agree with Nick about Danny's culpability here. I also agree with Winsomme regarding Doc Rivers having to use the pieces he has as best he can.

The thing is this, I refuse to believe that Bill Walker cant be 'coached' or taught into at least staying in front of a guy like Lebron James for 10 minutes a night. Sure there will be fouls, I can live with that. At least he will be wearing Lebron down. I think Scalabrine will give a tremendous effort and do it in an intelligent manner, but he will pick up some quick fouls against Lebron basically the same way. 

We have the perfect guy for Walker to practice against in Pierce. If he cannot come close to covering Paul in practice (I dont believe that he cant at least bother Pierce) then he is as bad as Tony Allen because that makes it mental more than physical. The same theory applies to Ray Allen with JR Giddens against the better SG around the league.

The final part of my theory here is this: We could do worse than trading baskets with a Lebron or Kobe team while Paul or Ray gets a few minutes rest around a quarter break. There are going to other Celtic weapons out there that Lebron cannot deal with like KG, Rondo and even Eddie House. Let the Lebrons play 42-44 minutes, he will be more worn down in the 4th quarter in the close games while our guys have a little more energy. Then we will see the 'Truth'.

How is Bill Walker going to play defense on the leagues best player for ten minutes a game? He's smaller, slower, and a rookie. Not to mention that he hasn't played in any meaningful minutes all season. Bill Walker does one Tomahawk Dunk and now posters are calling for him to guard Lebron. Give me a break. We should have traded for Gerald so we could have had a Kobe stopper too.

[wdleehi]

I agree with Nick about Danny's culpability here. I also agree with Winsomme regarding Doc Rivers having to use the pieces he has as best he can.

The thing is this, I refuse to believe that Bill Walker cant be 'coached' or taught into at least staying in front of a guy like Lebron James for 10 minutes a night. Sure there will be fouls, I can live with that. At least he will be wearing Lebron down. I think Scalabrine will give a tremendous effort and do it in an intelligent manner, but he will pick up some quick fouls against Lebron basically the same way. 

We have the perfect guy for Walker to practice against in Pierce. If he cannot come close to covering Paul in practice (I dont believe that he cant at least bother Pierce) then he is as bad as Tony Allen because that makes it mental more than physical. The same theory applies to Ray Allen with JR Giddens against the better SG around the league.

The final part of my theory here is this: We could do worse than trading baskets with a Lebron or Kobe team while Paul or Ray gets a few minutes rest around a quarter break. There are going to other Celtic weapons out there that Lebron cannot deal with like KG, Rondo and even Eddie House. Let the Lebrons play 42-44 minutes, he will be more worn down in the 4th quarter in the close games while our guys have a little more energy. Then we will see the 'Truth'.

How is Bill Walker going to play defense on the leagues best player for ten minutes a game? He's smaller, slower, and a rookie. Not to mention that he hasn't played in any meaningful minutes all season. Bill Walker does one Tomahawk Dunk and now posters are calling for him to guard Lebron. Give me a break. We should have traded for Gerald so we could have had a Kobe stopper too.

The truth is they don't need 10 minutes of guarding Lebron everynight.


But 10 minutes guarding and average to weak offensive player every night could go a long way towards the energy Pierce and Ray have to guard Lebron and Kobe over two long series.

[billysan]

How is Bill Walker going to play defense on the leagues best player for ten minutes a game? He's smaller, slower, and a rookie. Not to mention that he hasn't played in any meaningful minutes all season. Bill Walker does one Tomahawk Dunk and now posters are calling for him to guard Lebron. Give me a break. We should have traded for Gerald so we could have had a Kobe stopper too.

No one in the league can stop Lebron James defensively. Even if they do stop him, the referees will give him the ticky tack fouls because he is a star, but thats a different subject. I just suggested Bill Walker could harass him, much like Brian Scalabrine and Tony Allen will be asked to do if they are healthy enough to play.

Do you think Ray Allen can stop him? How about Tony Allen? Even James Posey didnt really stop him last year, just harassed him. Lebron is going to hit a certain number of shots no matter who or what is covering him. Our best option is clearly Paul Pierce, but why wear out Paul for the 44 minutes Lebron is going to be in the game? That IMO hurts us more than playing Walker against him for 10 minutes because then if we happen to be in a close one in the 4th quarter, Paul is beaten up and cant score for us, let alone stop Lebron.

I just hate to see Pierce played so many minutes. Just my opinion.

[Change]

But 10 minutes guarding and average to weak offensive player every night could go a long way towards the energy Pierce and Ray have to guard Lebron and Kobe over two long series.

If all goes well, what about the series before that? C's will have 2series before the cavs, so who is going to backup Pierce? I still believe Doc should use JR (3-4mins) in the playoffs since everyone says he is the better defender. Or just leave it to TA to screw everything again.

[footey]

I would like to see Walker in just to help us on the boards.  After Perk, we had no one last night other than Powe and Rondo.

[wdleehi]

But 10 minutes guarding and average to weak offensive player every night could go a long way towards the energy Pierce and Ray have to guard Lebron and Kobe over two long series.

If all goes well, what about the series before that? C's will have 2series before the cavs, so who is going to backup Pierce? I still believe Doc should use JR (3-4mins) in the playoffs since everyone says he is the better defender. Or just leave it to TA to screw everything again.

I expect TA and Scali to be back.  With Marbury, TA will never have to create again.  He can go to being the slasher that takes no more then 2 dribbles.

[Fafnir]

I would like to see Walker in just to help us on the boards.  After Perk, we had no one last night other than Powe and Rondo.

Judging by the accounts of the game Pierce was hesistant to stick his head into the paint his game. Which really hurts as Baby is obviously not the rebounder that KG is.

But you're underselling Ray. He had 6 rebounds to tie for second with Powe.

[winsomme]

the one thing i'll say about Doc's current strategy is that there is nothing more deflating and energy-sucking than losing games....or energizing than winning games.

plus, we want Mar to be around  winning. we don't want to bring him here and then start losing all of a sudden.

and at this point, i'd hate to concede home court advantage. I think with the additions of Moore and Mar, this is a real possibility and we should go for it.

that said, can we get Walker some minutes without losing games? my answer is "yes", but it is hard to argue with success....

on a side note, i'm pretty bummed that CLE got to play SAS in SA without Duncan or Ginobili....how freaking lucky are they?

[KungPoweChicken]

But 10 minutes guarding and average to weak offensive player every night could go a long way towards the energy Pierce and Ray have to guard Lebron and Kobe over two long series.

If all goes well, what about the series before that? C's will have 2series before the cavs, so who is going to backup Pierce? I still believe Doc should use JR (3-4mins) in the playoffs since everyone says he is the better defender. Or just leave it to TA to screw everything again.

I expect TA and Scali to be back.  With Marbury, TA will never have to create again.  He can go to being the slasher that takes no more then 2 dribbles.

Are you expecting TA to take House's minutes come playoff time?

[cordobes]

How is Bill Walker going to play defense on the leagues best player for ten minutes a game? He's smaller, slower, and a rookie. Not to mention that he hasn't played in any meaningful minutes all season. Bill Walker does one Tomahawk Dunk and now posters are calling for him to guard Lebron. Give me a break. We should have traded for Gerald so we could have had a Kobe stopper too.

No one in the league can stop Lebron James defensively. Even if they do stop him, the referees will give him the ticky tack fouls because he is a star, but thats a different subject. I just suggested Bill Walker could harass him, much like Brian Scalabrine and Tony Allen will be asked to do if they are healthy enough to play.

Do you think Ray Allen can stop him? How about Tony Allen? Even James Posey didnt really stop him last year, just harassed him. Lebron is going to hit a certain number of shots no matter who or what is covering him. Our best option is clearly Paul Pierce, but why wear out Paul for the 44 minutes Lebron is going to be in the game? That IMO hurts us more than playing Walker against him for 10 minutes because then if we happen to be in a close one in the 4th quarter, Paul is beaten up and cant score for us, let alone stop Lebron.

I just hate to see Pierce played so many minutes. Just my opinion.

I very much doubt Walker can do a job nearly as good as Tony Allen or even Scalabrine (who already doesn't have a chance to slow down LeBron...), assuming they're healthy. If they're not, I think that you just have to pray another player joins the team. I don't see Walker being able to do a much better job than Ray or Marbury, so I guess at least you'd take the mismatch on the other side.

Btw, the Rockets did an excellent job on LeBron the other night. Of course, having the 2 of the best (if not the 2 best) perimeter defenders of the league in the roster helps. This article on how the Rockets defend LeBron is interesting:

http://myespn.go.com/blogs/truehoop/0-38-247/The-Houston-Rockets-Beat-the-Odds.html

[wdleehi]

But 10 minutes guarding and average to weak offensive player every night could go a long way towards the energy Pierce and Ray have to guard Lebron and Kobe over two long series.

If all goes well, what about the series before that? C's will have 2series before the cavs, so who is going to backup Pierce? I still believe Doc should use JR (3-4mins) in the playoffs since everyone says he is the better defender. Or just leave it to TA to screw everything again.

I expect TA and Scali to be back.  With Marbury, TA will never have to create again.  He can go to being the slasher that takes no more then 2 dribbles.

Are you expecting TA to take House's minutes come playoff time?

No.  I expect TA or Scali to be playing the roll of defender off the bench at the SG/SF/PF area (TA not going to guard PFs, Scali's not going to defend SGs)

House will still be the offensive snipper off the bench.  Against a team like Cleveland, the small backcourt will allow him to play more.  Against an LA team with larger offensive minded swing men, TA might be needed more.

[billysan]

The truth is they don't need 10 minutes of guarding Lebron everynight.


But 10 minutes guarding and average to weak offensive player every night could go a long way towards the energy Pierce and Ray have to guard Lebron and Kobe over two long series.

Excellent point, I agree this would work just as well toward maximizing our output from Paul and Ray.

Thanx for the link Cordobes, nice read. I think there is a good chance we dont have Tony Allen and Brian Scalabrine both back come playoff time. This is just a bad scenario all the way around without a healthy quality backup at the wing. We really have very little beyond those two IMO, so I am looking for ways to use what we have.

[BillfromBoston]

How is Bill Walker going to play defense on the leagues best player for ten minutes a game? He's smaller, slower, and a rookie. Not to mention that he hasn't played in any meaningful minutes all season. Bill Walker does one Tomahawk Dunk and now posters are calling for him to guard Lebron. Give me a break. We should have traded for Gerald so we could have had a Kobe stopper too.

No one in the league can stop Lebron James defensively. Even if they do stop him, the referees will give him the ticky tack fouls because he is a star, but thats a different subject. I just suggested Bill Walker could harass him, much like Brian Scalabrine and Tony Allen will be asked to do if they are healthy enough to play.

Do you think Ray Allen can stop him? How about Tony Allen? Even James Posey didnt really stop him last year, just harassed him. Lebron is going to hit a certain number of shots no matter who or what is covering him. Our best option is clearly Paul Pierce, but why wear out Paul for the 44 minutes Lebron is going to be in the game? That IMO hurts us more than playing Walker against him for 10 minutes because then if we happen to be in a close one in the 4th quarter, Paul is beaten up and cant score for us, let alone stop Lebron.

I just hate to see Pierce played so many minutes. Just my opinion.

I very much doubt Walker can do a job nearly as good as Tony Allen or even Scalabrine (who already doesn't have a chance to slow down LeBron...), assuming they're healthy. If they're not, I think that you just have to pray another player joins the team. I don't see Walker being able to do a much better job than Ray or Marbury, so I guess at least you'd take the mismatch on the other side.

Btw, the Rockets did an excellent job on LeBron the other night. Of course, having the 2 of the best (if not the 2 best) perimeter defenders of the league in the roster helps. This article on how the Rockets defend LeBron is interesting:

http://myespn.go.com/blogs/truehoop/0-38-247/The-Houston-Rockets-Beat-the-Odds.html

I find it curious that you site this article while at the same time  lamenting not having another 3 with length to help man-up on LeBron.

If anything, this article reiterates the point i've made about the importance of team defense and "steering" LeBron to the help - something that doesn't require length or great man-to-man skills.

We have enough defenders who can play minutes at the 3 and follow a game plan to take away LeBron's primary and force him baseline - that's about intelligence and discipline, not footspeed and length/size.

Boston has enough smart defenders in Pierce/Ray/Scal/TA to give LeBron different looks and steer him toward the help. I am uncocerned about him shooting over the top - we've seen this in two games this year - in the first game LeBron didn't hit jumpers and we won, the 2nd he was uncharacteristically hot from outside, hitting 4 3's and multiple jumpers off the dribble.

In Both instances Boston was able to force LeBron to take a higher percentage of jump shots than he is accustom to - if they can do that in a 7 game series, I like our chances at limiting his efficiency...  

[footey]

I would like to see Walker in just to help us on the boards.  After Perk, we had no one last night other than Powe and Rondo.

Judging by the accounts of the game Pierce was hesistant to stick his head into the paint his game. Which really hurts as Baby is obviously not the rebounder that KG is.

But you're underselling Ray. He had 6 rebounds to tie for second with Powe.

You're right, Ray picked up some of the slack last night. But does not negate the fact that our bigs just don't play big. Perk and Powe and hope for mo'.